Conventional water emulsion paint compositions are prepared by dispersing one or more color pigments in water containing suitable additives such as surfactants, stabilizers, dispersing agents and thickeners, followed by mixing with film formers like acrylic, acrylic, copolymers and acrylic containing emulsions. An essential requirement of any pigment is first that it must produce a distinctive and pleasant color when added to the paint composition either alone or together with other pigments. Additionally, the pigment must be stable so as to retain its color for a prolonged period of time. Another important requirement is that the pigment should have a very finely-divided particle size generally less than about ten microns. The fineness of the particles enhances the ability of the pigment to be easily dispersed throughout the paint mixture during processing and further assures that the paint will be evenly distributed in a thin layer upon application to a surface without any streaks or other imperfections. This latter requirement is most significant of course in those instances where the paint is to be applied by conventional brush, roller or spray techniques.
It is therefore an important object of the present invention to provide an improved pigment for use in water emulsion paint compositions. Another more specific object of the present invention is to provide an improved water emulsion paint composition having good color stability and a relatively high resistance to fading upon exposure to sunlight.